Amends (Sambucky)

Chapter Thirteen

"Me and Riley will go after Lynn. Wilson and Barnes will take Coe. Sound good?" Sharon questioned.

Sam held in a giggle as Riley whispered something in his ear, the two of them having been laughing all morning, "Uhh, what if Riley and I went together? Just to catch up, ya know."

Riley laughed a bit, making Sam laugh more.

"Uhh, no. No, because we actually have to get shit done," Sharon scoffed, turning to Bucky with a shake of her head.

"Aww, boo. C'mon Carter, you're no fun," Riley nudged Sam again.

"You remember the first time you slept over? And then you met my dad covered in dirt?" Sam laughed, "Played it off like a champ though. But I guess the second time it happened he must've thought something was up."

Riley laughed.

"Ugh, I wish he could see you right now! He wouldn't believe his eyes; he loved you more than life itself. He wished I could've been as fit and responsible as you; I bet my mom would've loved you too."

"Hey! We're still on a mission here," Sharon reminded, silencing the conversation with the sound of her voice, "We work hard, but you can bet your ass the devil works harder. Whoever finishes first, get back to the hotel immediately, and I'll help from there. You're lucky we still have a shot right now, so hurry the hell up before it's too late!"

"No no, Sharon, I think it's fine, really," Bucky stepped in, "They make a good pair. You know they'll have each other's backs, and they get along well."

"Barnes, I don't give a fuck. Not one, " Sharon responded, handing him some keys, "I picked these teams for a reason. Now do whatever the hell you need to do, and then get out of here."

Bucky shook his head, glancing up at Sam, who nodded his head and went for the door. Soon the two were walking down the steps of the hotel, the complimentary breakfast at the bottom reminding Bucky that it was still only seven in the morning.

"It could be worse, but I'm glad I got you and not Sharon," Sam spoke up, "Nothing against her, I just prefer you."

"Grab something to eat and go to the bathroom. I'm not stopping anytime soon," Bucky informed.

"I can handle my bladder and its needs myself, thank you. As well as decide how to take care of myself. I'm not a child, Bucky," Sam corrected.

"Good, so don't act like one," Bucky stopped for a moment, handing Sam the keys, "I'm going to go to the bathroom, because that's the logical thing to do before a long road trip. You should do the same."

"Okay," Sam sped up to keep pace with Bucky, who began walking away, "Okay yeah. Let's do that."

Bucky stopped, "Seriously? You're following me to piss?"

"Uhh, well unless you want me to pee in the women's bathroom?"

"Or, you could go eat breakfast while I go, and then we could switch," Bucky suggested, "Like I said before."

Sam huffed in defeat, "Fine. I'll just sit out here then because I already ate."

"Whatever. I don't care what you do."

"Sure you don't," Sam grumbled to himself, sitting down on one of the couches, "That's why I'm sitting out here to wait. Because it takes you eight stalls to piss, not because my actions bother you."

~~~~~

Bucky tapped his fingers against the steering wheel as they hit traffic, listening to the radio, whose volume was only three.

Sam looked up from his phone that he had been scrolling through for hours, "Why are we stopped?"

"Because the car doesn't have wings, Sam," Bucky gestured to the traffic in front of and beside them, "We'll just have to wait."

Sam groaned, pushing his feet against the dashboard from his reclined seat, "I hate waiting. It's so boring."

"It changes nothing for you," Bucky pointed out, "Just go back to whatever you were doing. When you were quiet."

"You sure like silence."

"You sure like to talk," Bucky spoke, for a moment questioning why he was so angry with Sam. They had made amends, multiple times. Yet, he was angry, but his anger tended to flee every time he spoke to Sam for too long, "I think Dr. Raynor said something about silence in one of our sessions."

"Oh really?" Sam went back to scrolling.

"Yeah. Something about, emotional health speaking the loudest in silence," Bucky recalled, "So what's on your mind?"

"I don't really mind silence," Sam corrected, "But not this kind of silence."

"What kind then?"

"I don't know how to explain it," Sam sighed, "But you don't really like silence that much either, do you? With your whole, mysterious cyborg act, I see through you. But I can't blame you, I prefer noise too."

"Clearly," Bucky replied curtly.

"Yeah," Sam agreed as the car began to take off again. There was a moment of silence, then Sam continued, "Like when I hear someone laugh at a really funny joke I told, or when I hear the quiet footsteps of my nephews sneaking my shield, or even that little breath you take when you pretend you're not interested, but you are."

"I am not."

"Yes you ar— ah! See?! There it is!" Sam grinned, a laugh escaping his lips as Bucky fought one, "I just like the noise of everyone living. It reminds me why I do what I do. It makes it worthwhile."

"Sam." Bucky tried not to sound disgusted, but he was, "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"Whatever, Buck," Sam waved Bucky off, "But we all need something to keep us going. For me, it's the people. The innocent people, who deserve to be able to just live. Without any worries. And that includes you, you know?"

Bucky chuckled, "Sure."

"It does," Sam assured, going back to his phone, "I'm glad we're friends, James."

Bucky readjusted his grip on the steering wheel, "Me too."